Tom Tugendhat will warn that Britain will be more dangerous if Labour don't commit to spending three per cent of GDP on defence by 2030.

The Tory leadership candidate, who previously served in the military, will say that the armed forces should be equipped with an increasingly volatile world.

The shadow security minister told the Mail that he had seen first-hand the dangers of not equipping soldiers properly during his time in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He warned that keeping the UK safe has to the 'number one priority' of any government, and has committed to meeting the spending pledge if he becomes the next prime minister.

Labour has committed to raising spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP but has not set a timeframe, unlike Rishi Sunak who pledged to get to the amount by 2030 during the election campaign.

Mr Tugendhat has said that spending needs to be higher still as wars in the Middle East and Ukraine rumble on, and as threats from Iran and China grow.

He told the Mail: 'Labour simply cannot be trusted with the defence of our nation. Keeping our nation and the British people safe is the number one priority of any government.

'The threats the United Kingdom and our allies are facing are numerous and growing, so we must ensure our Armed Forces have the funding and equipment they need. This is exactly what I will do as the next Conservative Prime Minister.

'I will always make sure our Armed Forces have the funding and resources they need. Not only because I have seen first hand the consequences of failing to deliver the kit our forces need first hand, but because I will never gamble with our defence and security.'

Referring to his time in Iraq and Afghanistan, he said he saw the consequences of 'Labour's utter failure to provide the kit that is needed: soldiers going into battle without body armour, Land Rovers meant for Belfast being destroyed on the streets of Baghdad and helicopters unavailable to supply reinforcements or to get casualties to hospital.'

He said that increasing funding would deliver critical defence programmes, increase national security, bolster NATO and create job opportunities around the country.

Mr Tugendhat has pledged to meet the three per cent commitment by 2034 if he is elected prime minister in the next general election in five years and Labour has not yet met it.